Video: I was raised in a Methodist family, so you should watch this video

Pennsylvania state Rep. David Millard (R-109) is the incumbent. Dan Rae (D) and Tom Anderson (L) are providing the challenge. And just like in so many other races across the country, lesbian, gay, and bisexual people’s basic civil freedoms (and by extension those of their respective families) are being used as a test:

Ugh, “I was raised in a Catholic family and I do not support gay marriage” is a complete non sequitur! It’s like saying “I was born into an Orthodox Jewish family and I do not support the right to use a civil drivers license on Shabbat.” Or “I was raised in an atheist family and I do not support the right of churches to exist.” Or “I was raised in a Satan-worshipping family so I do not recognize American flags made of satin.” And so on and so on. Because (a) we are talking about the CIVIL MARRIAGE CONTRACT, (b) there are plenty of Catholics who do support equality, and (c) failing to personally support something because of faith views doesn’t mean you ban that something in the shared civil society!

Then the other two candidates fall where you’d expect them to in a blue state in 2010. In fact, one of the most striking things about the debate is how straight out of Central Casting both the candidates and the soundbites seem to be. Of course it’ll be up to local voters to now rank the positions according to perceived merit. But if we had one hope, it’d be that those merits would be stacked in accordance with the constitution and the fair and free America that we all share, not predominantly based upon the number of communion wafers the candidate did or did not consume as a youth.